World Series of Poker: The Best of the BestThe World Series of Poker (WSOP) is the largest set of poker tournaments in the world. It is held annually in Las Vegas, Nevada. The winner of each event earns a WSOP bracelet and a monetary prize. The main event of the WSOP is a $10,000 no-limit Texas Hold 'em tournament. In 2000 there were 512 entrants in the main event, with a $1.5 million prize. In 2008 there were 6844 entrants and a $9.1 million dollar prize. This event draws the biggest names in poker. It is also one of the world poker tour televised events. Traditionally the winner of the main event, in addition to a large cash prize and gold bracelet, has been given the unofficial title of World Champion. However, many of poker's top players consider the winner of the H.O.R.S.E. event to be the World Champion. The H.O.R.S.E. event is new and the buy in is $50,000 – which is five times that of the WSOP main event. This large buy-in has deterred amateurs from playing in the event. Therefore, the winner of this event is deemed the best professional and the World Champion (unofficially). The number of WSOP participants has grown every year. In 2000 there were 4,780 entrants in the various events, but in 2005 the number of entrants in the various events was 23,000. This represents the large growth in the popularity of poker, as well as the growth in success of the WSOP tournament. WSOP bracelets go to the winners of the various events. Phil Hellmuth (Read more about Phil Hellmuth here) holds the current record with eleven bracelets. Doyle Brunson and Johnny Chan each have ten WSOP bracelets. Todd Brunson, who is Doyle Brunson's son, won a bracelet as well. They are the only father/son team to have won bracelets in the WSOP tournament. The world series reaches back to 1968, when it began as an invitation-only event. It was held at the Holiday Hotel and Casino in Reno. It has developed into a major tournament held in Las Vegas and includes television coverage of some events. Since 2004 a "Player of the Year" award has been established. Points accumulated throughout the series, in open events, count towards the point total. An open event is one in which all players can participate. However, in 2008 the point structure was redone, to include the H.O.R.S.E. tournament in the points count. Year Winner Bracelets Final Tables Money Finishes 2004 Daniel Negreanu 1 5 6 2005 Allen Cunningham 1 4 5 2006 Jeff Madsen 2 4 4 2007 Tom Schneider 2 3 3 2008 Erik Lindgren 1 3 5Read about other famous poker players here. WSOP made their first expansion, World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE). In September of 2007, the first WSOP event was held outside Las Vegas, in London. It was complete with bracelets and multiple events. The main event was won by Annette Obrestad, who is a Norwegian online prodigy. She won the event the day before her 19th birthday, which makes her the youngest person to win a WSOP bracelet. Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack, who heads the WSOP, has indicated that other expansion sites are under consideration. Egypt and South Africa have been mentioned as possible WSOP expansion sites. In 2005 a video game was released that was based on the WSOP. This video game was titled World Series of Poker, and was released for various game consoles and computer platforms. A sequel, World Series of Poker: Tournament of Champions was released in 2006. World Series of Poker: Battle for the Bracelets continued the tradition and was released in 2007. Also in 2007, Harrah's (who is the sponsor of the WSOP) announced the creation of the World Series of Poker Academy. The Academy is a poker school aimed at providing all levels of poker players the skill they need to win a WSOP bracelet. Instructors for the academy are well-known poker players including: Phil Hellmuth, Greg Raymer, Scott Fischman and Mark Seif. In addition to the academy in Las Vegas, another academy was launched in Tunica, Indiana. The WSOP has their own web site which contains more information including: current tournament locations, buy-ins, other events, player profiles, blogs, and current standings.
Find out more about the world series of poker (WSOP) on their website.
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